Celebrations

Today we celebrate a new year for Robert H. Dy as he joins the ranks of senior citizens. A man with a sense of humor that balances his industriousness as he helps build the community through Panda Ice Cream, Sibulan Ice Plant and Dumaguete People's Estate. Robert, a Negorsyante

Awardee for his entrepreneurial endeavors, does not let the awards get to his head as he maintains his exemplary staff perspective of being helpful to his daughters as they embark on their own ventures. He happily does errands for them and correctly explains that if he was there driver while they were studying then more so he is a trusted utility man in there businesses. An industrial engineer by training,

Robert keeps a things-to-list in his pocket daily as his guide and reflects the systematic and orderly manner he thinks. He keeps a maintenance record for his vehicle noting date, kilometer reading, repair and maintenance work done. While joining him on a trip to Iloilo City to attend a Lions Cabinet

Meeting, he smilingly asked me to accompanying him to meet an angel. Curious, I followed him and found myself at the Iloilo Cathedral to meet the angel who was no less than Archbishop Angel Lagdameo. Robert had a good laugh poking me about my curiosity to meet angels. In this celebration of life, we are grateful to Him for friends who continue to encourage us to reach standards of excellence in health, mind and spirit by living a life that is a testimony of a living faith shown in the daily choices he makes.

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We celebrate holy week next and hopefully we do focus on the holiness of the celebration. I have been asking some acquaintances their plans for next week and most often the perspective is a vacation at some cool place. May the heat of summer burn into our hearts the passionate pain endured by Christ to sacrifice Himself that becomes a desire to be more like Him as we resurrect anew for another new year.

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As we continue with this charter change processing, the following story helps release the frustration we have with our government. Four men were bragging about how smart their dogs are. The first man was an Engineer, the second man was an Accountant, the third man was a Chemist, and the fourth man was a Government Worker. To show off, the Engineer called to his dog.

"T-Square, do your stuff." T-Square trotted over to a desk, took out some paper and a pen, and promptly drew a circle, a square, and a triangle. Everyone agreed that was pretty smart. But the Accountant said his dog could do better. He called his dog and said, "Slide Rule, do your stuff." Slide Rule went out into the kitchen and returned with a dozen cookies.

He divided them into 4 equal piles of 3 cookies each. Everyone agreed that was good. But the Chemist said his dog could do better. He called his dog and said, "Measure, do your stuff." Measure got up, walked over to the fridge, took out a quart of milk, got a 10 ounce glass from the cupboard and poured exactly 8 ounces without spilling a drop. Everyone agreed that was good.

The Government Worker called to his dog and said, "Coffee Break, do your stuff." Coffee Break jumped to his feet, ate the cookies, drank the milk, shit on the paper, sexually assaulted the other three dogs, claimed he injured his back while doing so, filed a grievance report for unsafe working conditions, put in for Worker's Compensation, and went home on sick leave.*